Year C
Discover the deeper meaning and connections found in this week's readings, through these great commentaries written by our priests.
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Listen
Humility is incredibly important but often misunderstood. There are some people who think that humility is weakness, low self-esteem, lack of ambition, a conscious effort to minimise or downplay our accomplishments, a low opinion of yourself, or maybe even a bad opinion of yourself. That's not humility; that's not virtue. Neither is it a sign of spiritual maturity, but rather a mark of insecurity.
Humility is not a low opinion of yourself, it's a clear opinion of yourself. Humility is knowledge of yourself as you really are. Derived from a Latin word, humilitas, it translates into English as ground, soil, or Earth, and gives us the concept of being grounded, of being rooted. People who are truly humbled are grounded in reality. It also reminds us, especially in this Lenten season, that all that we are comes from God, from God who loves us so much that He have His only Son that we might live. For we are dust, earth, soil and unto the soil we shall return.
This weekend’s Gospel reading takes us, with Peter, James, John and Jesus, up a mountain. In the Bible, mountains are often special places of prayer and encounter with God. We need to make time and space to pray and be with God, as Jesus did.
While Jesus was praying, his face changed in appearance, his clothing became dazzling white. Jesus is “transfigured”, his inner glory is revealed.
A cloud came and cast a shadow over them, and the disciples became frightened. Then from the cloud, a voice said,
"This is my chosen son, listen to him."
Listening is not always easy to do. It involves paying attention, thoughtful attention to the other, attending closely to what he says, heeding him, perhaps even obeying him. It carries the connotation of engagement and relationship. Unfortunately, sometimes, we don't want to listen and sometimes we're afraid to.
If I listen, then I might have to change my mind. And if I've already made up my mind, I don't want to change it. If I listen, it might mean I have to admit that I was wrong and I'm never wrong. If I listen, I might have to acknowledge that I don't know something that I've been pretending to know all along.
When we fail to listen, we fail to learn and, in the process, we're failing to make progress as we could or should in emotional health, in intellectual growth, in spiritual growth. Think how frustrating it is when someone won't listen to you and insists only on their side of the story, their point of view, their interpretation. Think how unattractive people who act like that can be.
On the other hand, think how easily reconciliation is achieved. Think what a really loving act listening can be. Of course, listening requires humility, it means humbling ourselves at least enough to recognize that on our own, we don't know how life works, at least not all of it. We don't know everything.
It takes humility to put aside my own self-importance, my own self-absorption, my own self-interest, to slow down and to listen to what somebody else might have to tell me or teach me. And a great place to learn to become a better listener is in prayer because prayer is not just talking to God, it's listening to Him. It's meant to be a conversation.
This week, I’d like to encourage you simply to make time and space to slow down and listen to Jesus as he speaks to you in the Gospels. Then simply respond.
Second Sunday of Lent
CCC 554-556, 568: the Transfiguration
CCC 59, 145-146, 2570-2572: the obedience of Abraham
CCC 1000: faith opens the way to comprehending the mystery of the Resurrection
CCC 645, 999-1001: the resurrection of the body
From very early times this Sunday has been characterised by the account of the Transfiguration which contrasts with the first Sunday in Lent when it is the Temptations of Jesus in the wilderness that gives it its tone. After the austerities that the people have taken on as their Lenten observance today is a reminder of what it is that they are looking forward to celebrating, the Resurrection. So perhaps a day to encourage a renewed effort when initial enthusiasm is beginning to wane? Perhaps the Rite of confession at the beginning of Mass might emphasise this for example:
In these moments of silence
with the transfigured Lord before our eyes
we can think about the past week
and how we have kept or failed to keep
our Lenten resolutions
to try to die each day to our selfishness
and to rise each day to the life of love
and ask forgiveness and the strength to persevere.
Lord Jesus,
you lived a life of simplicity,
you suffered and died on the cross
and you allowed your chosen friends
to have a glimpse of the glory of the new life
which you would share with us after your resurrection,
Lord, have mercy.
Christ Jesus,
you call us to die daily
to our selfishness and sin
and to rise daily to the new life of the resurrection,
Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus,
forgive us our failings,
renew our enthusiasm
and help us during this Lent
to die day by day to our selfishness and sin
so that we may rise with you at Easter
to the new life of love
as we renew the commitment of our Baptism.
Lord, have mercy.
Note: These hymns have been chosen from different sources.
Be still, for the presence of the Lord (CFE72, L720, LHON165)
Be thou my vision (CFE74, L970, LHON168)
Immortal, invisible (CFE301, L725, LHON361, TCH225)
Lord, the light of your love is shining (L770, CFE388)
Key
CFE - Celebration Hymnal for Everyone
L – Laudate
LHON – Liturgical Hymns Old and New (Mayhew, 1999)
TCH – The Catholic Hymnbook (Gracewing)
Do you have questions about the liturgy and how we are called to participate in it? Explore how the Church councils, saints, and popes have answered this key question and many more.
Every movement of the Mass is rich in meaning but we can become over-familiar with it. Rediscover the Mass and explore how it relates to the Exodus story, where many of its rituals come from, and how it makes Jesus present to us today.
